Generation Apart: Two authors of recent books about Hong Kong look at what underlies the discontent of young people in the city

“For many members of Generation HK, the growing tensions between China and Hong Kong have crystallised the feeling that their home has its own unique character that needs to be protected.”

Generation HK | Ben Bland – Teenage activists turned politicians, multi-millionaire super tutors and artists fighting censorship–these are the stories of Generation HK. From radically different backgrounds yet with a common legacy, having grown up in post-handover Hong Kong, these young people have little attachment to the era of British colonial rule or today’s China. Instead, they see themselves as Hong Kongers, an identity both reinforced and threatened by the rapid expansion of Beijing’s influence. Amid great political and social uncertainty, Generation HK is trying to build a brighter future. Theirs is a truly captivating coming-of-age story that reflects the bitter struggles beneath the gleaming facade of modern Hong Kong.

Ben Bland is the South China correspondent for the Financial Times. Prior to this, he was their correspondent in Indonesia and Vietnam. He is currently stationed in Hong Kong.

“Hong Kong may no longer be a borrowed place, but it still lives on borrowed time.”

A System Apart | Simon Cartledge – Since 1997, Hong Kong’s economic growth rate has dropped sharply, inequality has increased, and corruption has found its way to the highest levels of government. These developments, Simon Cartledge argues, can be attributed to the city’s ‘pro-business’ constitution, which has held back change and led to the rise of an anti-establishment, localist opposition.

Simon Cartledge is the founder of the Hong Kong-based publishing and research company Big Brains and a former Editor-in-Chief, Asia for the Economist Intelligence Unit. He has lived in Hong Kong for more than 25 years.

Book covers, synopses and author biographies courtesy of Penguin Random House and the authors.

In conversation with Antony Dapiran and Christopher DeWolf 5:00-6:30pm, 12 October 2017 (Thursday) The Studio, G/F, Eliot Hall, The University of Hong Kong [Directions] Seats are limited. Please register here. Note: The event will be […]